“Disclosure Day” is directed by Steven Spielberg, who gave us alien contacts in the fabled “Close Encounters of the Third Kind” and “E. T.” nearly half a century ago.
The new film, written by Spielberg and David Koepp, is in large part a fast-paced intriguing thriller. Behind the action, the message of the movie is well-intentioned, but so-so.
As the film starts, data analyst Daniel Kellner (played by Josh O’Connor) is in hot water. He’s defected, stealing a treasure trove of video records from the Wardex Corporation, a cybersecurity firm that has colluded with the government to hide information on alien encounters.
Kellner is scrambling to link up with his fellow rebels for a data dump that will make Wikileaks sound like a hiccup.
The head of Wardex, Scanlon (played by a sour-looking Colin Firth), pursues him with a platoon of henchmen in black vans. Scanlon also utilizes a hand-held alien gizmo that is practically a magic wand. He can teleport to spy on or threaten selected targets.
Meanwhile, life is turned upside down for Margaret Fairchild (played by Emily Blunt), a chirpy TV weathercaster in Kansas City hoping to graduate to the anchor desk.
When an eerie-looking red cardinal flutters into her apartment and gives her the eye, Margaret is triggered. She can suddenly talk in foreign tongues—even the clicks of an E. T—and can psychically connect with passers-by, diving into their minds, and their angst.
While everybody in the movie is being chased, or chasing, it’s apparent that Daniel and Margaret are linked. Like the Gatekeeper and the Keymaster in “Ghostbusters”, they have to get together, and something important will happen when they do.
The film lets us glimpse some of the “secrets” in the Wardex files, and they may or may not confirm your favorite urban legend.
The heart of the movie is a bigger question. If humanity finds that we aren’t alone, will we react with faith or fear? The kindly leader of the rebels, played by Colman Domingo, argues that we deserve the truth and we can handle it. His message, delivered in bold letters, is that we will be saved by empathy.
Firth, as the fearful, controlling villain, is not presented without sympathy. And in a sub-plot, Kellner’s girlfriend, an ex-nun, (played by Eve Hewson), worries if Disclosure Day will shatter religious believers.
On the debit side, you’re not sure all the details of the story fit together. The paranormal abilities of the characters seem to change, depending on what the plot requires.
But there are popcorn thrills, strong performances (especially from Emily Blunt) and John Williams, in his mid-90’s, provides one more music score for Spielberg.
Keep watching the skies for “Disclosure Day” and you can spot a constellation of three and a half stars out of five.
